New York Welsh

New York Welsh

A window into the lives and achievements of Welsh people in New York. Hosted by Gideon Jensen and Richard Swain, each episode features a different guest and their unique story. Often funny, sometimes sad, but always honest and inspirational. // Mewnwelediad i fywydau a chyflawniadau y Cymry yn Efrog Newydd. Wedi ei chyflwyno gan Gideon Jensen a Richard Swain, mae pob pennod yn taro sylw ar westeion gwahanol a’u hanes unigryw. Yn aml yn ddoniol, weithiau’n drist, ond bob amser yn onest ac yn ysbrydoledig.

Episodes

November 15, 2020 39 mins
Rebecca Hurn is an independent singer-songwriter from Porthcawl, in South Wales. Before writing and releasing her own music, Rebecca built up a fan following by recording acoustic cover songs and sharing them online. In September 2015 Rebecca released her debut EP ‘Lions’ which reached no. 5 in the iTunes Singer/Songwriter charts. With the release of her second EP ‘Waves’ in April 2018, Rebecca became a BBC Radio Wales 'A list...
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Claire Thomas is a photographer and photojournalist from Penygroes in South Wales. Her work on issues relating to global political and military conflicts, human rights, and humanitarian and environmental crises has earned her recognition at the 2017 British Journalism Awards, the 2018 UK Picture Editors’ Guild Awards, and the 2018 Amnesty International UK Media Awards. From within the camps that emerged from the refugee crisis in ...
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On this episode, Gideon and Richard chat with Dr Megan Williams from the Welsh North American Association about the upcoming annual North American Festival of Wales, a weekend long event that includes performances, poetry, literature, singing, dancing, seminars, a marketplace and an Eisteddfod. Sadly, due to the ongoing coronavirus threat, this year's entire event will be virtual, the first time in the festival's 91 year hi...
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Rod Thomas (stage name Bright Light Bright Light) is an independent singer-songwriter from the outskirts of Neath in South Wales. His music is a combination of nu-disco, 80s synthpop, dance and house music. Over the past decade he has collaborated with Elton John, Jake Shears, Andy Bell of Erasure, and toured with Cher. Two of his albums have reached the Top 20 on the UK Independent Albums Chart and his upcoming, fourth album, ‘Fun...
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Jamie Grundy is a former football coach and writer with a special focus on criminal justice, sport and rehabilitation. He is the author of 90 Minutes of Freedom, which follows HMP Prescoed FC, the only prisoner football team in Wales, through a single season in Gwent Central Division 2. The book was written with the support of 'National Sporting Heritage' as an exploration of how sport can assist in the rehabilitation effor...
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Gwenllian Higginson is an actor and writer from North Pembrokeshire. Gareth John Bale is an actor and director from Ynysmeudwy in the Swansea Valleys. On this episode, Gideon and Richard discuss ‘West’, the play written by Owen Thomas that Gwenllian and Gareth came to New York to perform as part of Wales Week. They cover Gwenllian’s previous run of performances in New York, starring as Jackie in ‘The Good Earth’, as well as Gareth’...
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Jaz-Michael King is a Chief Technology Officer and data privacy advocate. He the is founder of Tŵt (Toot) Wales, a new social media network built to encourage bilingualism online while providing a more private social media experience. Born in Cardiff, Jaz grew up in Llanilltud Fawr, South Glamorgan. After stints in England and France, he moved to New York in the mid-90s where his arrival coincided with the explosion of the internet...
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December 21, 2019 52 mins
Joined by Rachel John and Gwilyn Roberts-Harry from the New York Welsh, Gideon and Richard look back at the last 12 months. They discuss their favorite moments from the podcast, how the New York Welsh continues to evolve as an organization, and look ahead at what's to come in 2020.
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In the second of a two-part special episode Gideon and Richard pick up the story by looking at the catalyst for Welsh language activism in the 60s and 70s, the successes of the movement and the changes brought about by the establishing of the Welsh Assembly. With more contributions from special guest experts they learn about the sociological and neurological benefits of learning a second language and share some of the many tools f...
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In the first of a two-part special, Gideon and Richard ask, "Do you speak Welsh?”. They discuss the falling numbers of Welsh speakers and the various factors behind this decline. With contributions from special guest experts they delve into the history of Cymraeg, the roots of the language and how key events in history have impacted its usage—from the Roman Occupation, the English Reformation and the Industrial Revolution all t...
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Peter Thabit Jones is a poet from Swansea in South Wales. He is the author of sixteen books and his poems have been translated into over twenty-two languages. He is the recipient of a number of awards, including the Arts Council of Wales Award, the Homer European Medal for Poetry and Art, and the Shabdaguchha Journal Poet of the Year Award for his contribution to international poetry. He has performed and given writing workshops at...
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Chloe Wilson is an actor and singer from the Rhondda. An accomplished soprano, she learned her craft in the choral traditions of the valleys. At 18 she auditioned for and was accepted in to the American Academy of Dramatic Arts and — on completion of her studies — she was invited to stay on and join the Academy’s Company for 2018/19. Chloe recently performed in her first off-Broadway musical in New York, Ablaze, an a Capella “musi...
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Dylan Thomas is one of the most recognisable Welsh names in the United States. He’s best known for his landmark poems such as ‘Do not go gentle into that good night’ and ‘Death shall have no dominion’, his play for voices ‘Under Milk Wood’, and classic stories such as ‘A Child’s Christmas in Wales’. Born in Swansea in 1914, the legendary poet spent much of his life traveling back and forth between homes in London and Wales, yet to...
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Ibby Tarafdar is a graphic designer from Cardiff. Born in Wales, he grew up in Gabalfa after his father emigrated to Wales from Bangladesh in the 1980s. Since completing his degree in Graphic Communication at the University of South Wales in 2014, Ibby has since created brand identities for numerous athletes signed to Mayweather Promotions and Jay Z’s Roc Nation. His designs have featured alongside globally recognized brands like U...
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Dr Denny Taylor is an author, researcher and educator living in New York City. She has published 19 books—fiction and nonfiction—and is a co-founder of Garn Press, a publishing house with a focus on social conscience. Denny is widely credited with giving rise to family literacy, a concept UNESCO uses today as an organizing principle for supporting vulnerable populations all over the world. In 2004, she was elected Member of the In...
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James Bird is a rugby player and management consultant. He is a fly-half for New York based Old Blue RFC, who he has played for since moving to the US in 2013. In 2016 he became eligible for and represented the US national team in the Americas Rugby Championship, the American equivalent of the Six Nations. On this episode, Richard and Gideon talk about the growing game in the US, the challenges of balancing a demanding rugby schedu...
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Matthew Hitt is a singer and songwriter from the Rhondda Valley in South Wales. He is the front man of Drowners, an American-Welsh indie rock band based out of New York. Formed in 2011, the band signed for Frenchkiss Records and released their self-titled studio album in May 2013. After seven years performing and touring the world and one more studio album, the band announced a hiatus last year, prompting Matt to produce his first ...
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Sir Karl Jenkins is a musician and composer from Penclawdd on the Gower Peninsula. He was knighted in the 2015 Queen's Birthday Honours List. From his early days in jazz and prog rock he has gone on to become the most performed living composer in the world. His canon of work transcends genre or classification and now includes 17 gold and platinum discs. His work The Armed Man: A Mass for Peace has been in the UK charts for 15 y...
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Sarah Collinson is Head of Account Management at Joan, a startup creative agency based in NYC that works with Google and YouTube. Prior to joining Joan, Sarah spent 4 years at world-renowned advertising agency Anomaly where, among other things, she helped create one of the most highly-acclaimed cannabis brands in the world today. Originating from Swansea, she studied History at Oxford before moving to London, and later New York, to...
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Paul Mealor has been described in the New York Times as, the most important person to emerge in Welsh music since William Mathias. He rose to global attention when his motet Ubi Caritas et Amor was performed at the wedding of Prince William and Catherine Middleton in 2011. That same year he became the first classical composer to hold both the classical and pop chart No 1’s at the same time while his single, ‘Wherever You Are’, a p...
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